RAM Voltage. Do I need to increase it?

[lew-3008]

Hi there peeps,

I keep getting memory_management BSOD. I was wondering if i should increase my ram voltage to something a little over the stock 1.5V? Its a new build AMD FX-8350 with AsRock 990FX Extreme4, and Corsair Vengeance 16GB 1866Mhz. Ive checked all drivers are up to date and windows updates are all complete, and so far, nothing is overclocked. Could it be the stock voltage just isn't cutting it?

Thanks.

 

[Xttony]

Have you set the ram frequency and timings correctly? If you haven't done it do that first and see if it increases system stability.

 

[lunyone]

I would run Memtest86 on your RAM sticks and see if you encounter any errors. Most DDR3 RAM sticks operate at 1.5v (stock settings), but some RAM sets will run at faster speeds, but require more voltage (usually 1.65v) to operate at the faster settings. Now I'm not saying that you should require more voltage, but I would definitely run Memtest86 first to see if you have a bad stick of RAM first.

Is your RAM set 2 x 8 gb's or 4 x 4 gb's? It's possible that you have a bad RAM stick (see above notes) and/or maybe a flaky mobo RAM slot.

 

[lew-3008]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the speedy reply. Will run the memtest this evening. Last time I tried though, it came back all 100%. Its 2 sticks of 8GB. Worth mentioning though that it was originally part of a 32GB (4x8) but due to the limitations of the FX-8350 CPU, was only running at 1333Mhz, so I removed 2 of the sticks to form a 16GB 1866Mhz setup. timings and voltage are currently all stock. Hope it isnt a faulty mobo or ram as its all brand new :-(

 

[lunyone]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the speedy reply. Will run the memtest this evening. Last time I tried though, it came back all 100%. Its 2 sticks of 8GB. Worth mentioning though that it was originally part of a 32GB (4x8) but due to the limitations of the FX-8350 CPU, was only running at 1333Mhz, so I removed 2 of the sticks to form a 16GB 1866Mhz setup. timings and voltage are currently all stock. Hope it isnt a faulty mobo or ram as its all brand new :-(

Which limitations? You should be only limited by your Mobo, thus you should be able to use all RAM slots.

 

[lew-3008]

see here http://forum.corsair.com/v3/showthread.php?t=110429

It seems as long as you populate 4 ram slots, the speed drops from 1866Mhz to 1333Mhz.

 

[lunyone]

see here http://forum.corsair.com/v3/showthread.php?t=110429

It seems as long as you populate 4 ram slots, the speed drops from 1866Mhz to 1333Mhz.

Nice link, so he would only be able to run at 1600 mHz anyway by that chart, since he has 4 slots and is only using 2, right?

 

[lew-3008]

Nice link, so he would only be able to run at 1600 mHz anyway by that chart, since he has 4 slots and is only using 2, right?

So do I need to modify the BIOS to slow it down to 1600Mhz then? In which case looks like I need to modify the timings and voltage right?

 

[Xttony]

You can run the 1866 setup. There must be a problem somewhere else. Setup the settings manuallyas specified by the card. Don't increase your voltage unnecessarily, this may cause more bsods

 

[lew-3008]

Will try again and set up the ram manually then. Im confused now because that table, published by AMD, shows maximum speed in my current setup as 1600, yet the mobo has chosen to run full speed 16GB ram at 1866Mhz, with timing at 10-11-10-30. When I had all four in and it would only run at 1333Mhz, I changed the timing to 9-9-9-24, so it should of been stable I would of thought. Or is there something else you have to modify? The voltage has stayed the same throughout at 1.5V.

 

[Xttony]

These frequency limitations exist due to motherboard too. First check if your motherboard supports it.

 

[lew-3008]

It isnt on the list of tested memory that Asrock publish. But then, I saw in another post someone saying that manufacturers cant test every single memory module made. Is this true? Or should I buy new ram that is supported by Asrock?

 

[lunyone]

Your RAM should be fine. You will need to test your RAM with Memtest86 first to verify that all of your sticks are good. Maybe you have a bad stick in the set of 4 or maybe you don't, you'll have to test and see for yourself.

 

[Xttony]

It isnt on the list of tested memory that Asrock publish. But then, I saw in another post someone saying that manufacturers cant test every single memory module made. Is this true? Or should I buy new ram that is supported by Asrock?

Manufactires don't test every memory module. That is impossible for them to do.